This morning's trading session was kicked off by two more big
bank earnings announcements.
Bank of America announced earnings of $0.15 per share,
beating expectations. Investors were likely encouraged by
the bank's ability to raise its Tier 1 common equity ratio to
9.86% from 8.65% in the previous quarter. Shares climbed
2.4%.

A little commentary: While the inverse correlation between
stocks and Treasuries appears to be returning to normal somewhat,
the relationship between stocks and earnings isn't. In a
note to clients today,
Barclays' Barry Knapp noted that 1) the
negative-to-positive preannouncements ratio is at multi-year
highs and 2) the earnings surprise ratio has been
tumbling. Both are bearish reads. Especially with
stocks rallying as of late, investors may experience some
volatility if corporations continue to announce mediocre or
disappointing Q4 results.

A little more commentary: On the other hand the stock market
rally may be explained by the fact that the equity risk premium
is already at abnormally high levels. This is an argument
that
Oppenheimer's Brian Belski has been pushing. In other
words, investors' appetite for risk has been so low that the
appetite may rise even in an increasingly risky environment.